Childhood
by SarissaDiablo
Summary: 3 children, born on the same day, in the same lab below Nibelheim. Series of shorts about their childhood together. Rated M for the fact that their children, and what Hojo does. Prolouge for my Wutai War story.


**This is a series of shorts that chronicle the childhood of the three. This is pretty much only a one-shot, and I haven't decided if I am going to make it into a story. I know if I do it will follow Crisis Core as best as I can get it. If you like it let me know, and if you want more of this, let me know. Thanks!**

**Disclaimer: I will never own the rights to this. I only write about it becuase i'm bored, and I have no life. I own nothing, except my one made up character.**

**~x~x~x~**

"I'm pregnant," she said, and the President narrowed his eyes at his wife.

"You're what?" he asked, though he had heard her quite easily. She scoffed at him, taking a drag of her cigarette as she casually looked over her blond son, where he was playing on the carpet. Rufus was only one year old, and already he was very into weapons. He was trying to figure out how to take apart the gun that was sitting before him, his chubby, pink face screwed up in concentration.

"I'm pregnant, didn't you hear me?" she said, her voice chilly. She didn't want this pregnancy, and the only reason she was telling her husband, was because he was the President of the ShinRa Corporation. Even if she had gone down to the slums to get an abortion, he would learn about it. She narrowed her eyes as her husband got a calculating look in his eyes.

"You don't want this either?" he asked, and she nodded her head in agreement. "Then I have a proposition for you. Our new lead scientist is trying something on pregnant mothers. He is even trying this on his own wife, who is also pregnant. He assures me it is completely safe for the mother and baby, and he would want the child after it's born. You would be able to come back here, and finish your life. Is that agreeable?"

She thought about it for a moment, stubbing out her cigarette in the ashtray, before nodding.

"As long as nothing happens to me, I don't care what happens to the kid," she said. With those words, the deal was done, and it wasn't long before she found herself underneath the mansion at Nibelheim.

**~x~x~x~**

"Twins?" Hojo said in amazement, barely concealing his glee. Not only would he have his own child, but now there were two more who were responding well to the mako and Jenova cells. Three super soldiers, all of them under his control. The nurse in front of him nodded.

"Yes, a boy and a girl," she said, and Hojo's elated emotions fell. A female? Then his spirits soared again. The mother was healthy, and the nurse had told him that all three babies were very healthy. At six months along, he had learned that his child with his wife was a boy, and now the other bitch was going to have twins, and one of them a female. He had never had good luck with trying out Jenova on female subjects, but maybe because she was still in the womb, this would be different. Maybe that was what it took.

"Thank you, now leave," he commanded, his voice distant as he thought. He didn't notice the narrowed eyes of the dark-haired woman as she nodded, and turned, walking out of his office.

"Lockhart!" the blond woman shouted, once the nurse returned to the room that was housing the Presidents wife and her twins.

"Yes ma'am?" she asked, her voice sugary sweet, even though inside she seethed. She didn't agree with what Hojo was doing, and the callous way this blond bitch treated her own body. She smoked, she drank, and did whatever she wanted to do. She didn't care about the welfare of the two unborn babies inside her.

"I need a new pack of smokes, go get me one," the blond said dismissively, and Sarah Lockhart turned, walking out of the room before she smacked the arrogance off that pretty face.

**~x~x~x~**

"Their bleeding to death Hojo!" Sarah yelled into the scientists face, trying to get him to see that both women were dying as they spoke. Hojo merely looked at her dispassionately, and then turned to the two screaming women on the tables. The three babies had been whisked away before he could even see them, to be cleaned and looked over.

"Let them die, their work is done," Hojo said, and Sarah gaped at him, before collecting herself.

"No, I'm not going to let them die," she said, and Hojo just shrugged, walking away. All the woman stuff was making him sick. He never realized that giving birth was so damn messy.

**~x~x~x~**

"They both died?" the President asked, puffing on his cigar.

"Yes sir, but all three subjects are healthy and already showing great intelligence," Hojo said, not even looking at the President, but down at the clipboard that was in his hand, his eyebrow furrowed above his glasses.

"Oh well, she was a bitch anyway, and I already have an heir," the President said, turning in his chair and looking out the window to the city of Midgar. "I do have one request though. The boy is to be named Cloud, and the girl Storm. That is all I want."

"Understood sir," Hojo commented, before turning and walking out the door.

**~x~x~x~**

"What is wrong with her?" Hojo asked, looking at the petite child that was playing with Cloud and Sephiroth. As though she had heard, the girl child turned her luminous purple eyes to him, meeting his eyes through the one-way mirror as though she could actually see him. A shiver went up his spine at the bright intelligence burning in those eyes. At six months of age, all three of them showed great intellect, even though their bodies were developing at a normal rate. Even so, the three were already crawling around, and Storm had even tried walking already. She was clearly the leader of the small group. They had already developed a language all their own, and no matter how many people Hojo brought in, or how many hours he spent listening to them, he couldn't figure out what they were saying. He let out a breath as Cloud distracted her, making her turn those knowing eyes away from him.

"Nothing is wrong with her sir," the nurse said, placing a hand on her distended belly. Sarah Lockhart was pregnant, and although she was still employed by ShinRa, and Hojo had offered her a substantial amount of money to experiment on her and her unborn baby, she had politely refused. She was quickly getting appalled at what Hojo was planning on doing to these three children, even though she felt that same unnatural shiver whenever one of the children would look at her. With her dark purple hair, and bright purple eyes the girl was the worst. Neither Cloud, nor Sephiroth could illicit the feeling of having her soul bared for the world to see, like that little girl could. Even so, she had a happy nature, as all three of them did. Cloud, with his spiky bright blond hair, and eyes so intense a blue they didn't seem like they could be real, and Sephiroth with his odd silver hair, and spring green eyes, were always happy to go with the aides, even though they weren't happy with the needles and mako, and everyone in the lab knew it. Storm on the other hand, gave no one smiles except for her brothers, and she never cried, or threw a fit when she was brought for testing. Everything went along smoothly for a couple years, until Hojo decided that it was time to separate them into their own rooms.

**~x~x~x~**

"I want my brothers back!" the girl screamed, each word punctuated by the slamming of a small fist on the locked door of her room. At four years old, her eyes and hair had settled down into what they would be her entire life. Spiky bangs waved across her eyes, black at the tips, and silver streaking through the purple length. Her eyes were still the bright purple, but around her slit pupil, there was a faint coloring of bright blue, mixed with green. She continued slamming her fists into the steel door, getting a sick satisfaction when she heard her own hand break as she made a dent in the metal. She was not going to take this.

The door opened, and she rushed through, slamming the door hard enough into the aide that he fell to the floor unconscious. She moved quickly down the hallway, feeling the bones in her hand knit together even as she walked. Searching right and left for the doors that would lead into her brothers rooms, she stopped for a moment as a scream resounded down the metal hallway. She would know that voice anywhere.

Bursting into the lab, she narrowed her eyes as she growled at the people in the room. Hojo looked up, startled, his hand poised with a needle over the arm of Sephiroth. He was strapped down to the table, his pitiful screams echoing through the room.

"Don't let her interfere," Hojo commanded, and four of the aides ran over to her, even as she was running towards Hojo, murder smoldering in her heart. Two of the aides managed to grab both arms, but she twisted, lashing out with her legs, and heard a satisfying crack as the leg of the one on the left broke, and he went down whimpering. That was all she got before the other three finally contained her, one on each arm, and one holding her skinny legs together. She screamed in rage, flinging her body back and forth in an effort to get away.

"Storm," Sephiroth said quietly, in their own language. She stopped moving immediately, green and purple locking onto the other, as Hojo narrowed his eyes, still not able to understand what they were saying.

"I'm not going to let him do this to us anymore," she said, her voice hissing.

"What choice do we have?" he said, and she swallowed, tears filling her eyes. He was right, and she didn't want to admit it. They didn't know how to fight, and how would three small children make it in the world? She gave one mighty heave of her body, and twisted out of the grasp of the men. She landed on her feet, and walked quickly over to Sephiroth, taking the small, pale hand in hers that wasn't attached to a needle. She barely noticed when Hojo waved the aides away, studying her intently. She reached up and brushed back a sweaty strand of silver hair from his green eyes, with the exact same slit pupil.

"I'm here my brother," she said quietly, still speaking in their language. "We will get away from this eventually, but for now, I will be here with you both, no matter what we have to go through." Then she looked away from the grateful look in those green eyes, and stared straight into Hojo's dark eyes.

"Sedate him," she said quietly. Hojo narrowed his eyes, and then smirked.

"What will you do to spare him this?" he asked, and she growled softly, her hand tightening around Sephiroth's. She looked back at him, noting the pain lines that were creasing his brow and the corners of his eyes. Four years old, and they already had wrinkles. She made her decision quickly, and looked back up to the hated man who controlled their lives.

"If you let me be with them whenever you do this, and sedate them," she said and paused, taking a deep breath. She ignored the soft 'don't do this' from Sephiroth. "I will do anything you want me to, no arguing." Hojo's dark eyes became thoughtful, and he reached over and ran dry, harsh fingers against her soft cheek. She fought her own instincts not to flinch away, and stared defiantly into his eyes, ignoring the tightening of her brother's hand on her own.

"Anything?" Hojo asked quietly, his fingers running down the side of her neck, to the collar of the white scrubs she and her brothers were required to wear.

"Anything," she agreed, looking back at Sephiroth. She had a hard time meeting those green eyes, full of painful anger. It was obvious that he didn't want her doing this, because even at their young age, they both knew what Hojo intended for her.

"Don't tell Cloud," she said in their language, and Sephiroth nodded, his eyes becoming heavy lidded as Hojo did indeed sedate him. As Sephiroth fell under the spell of the drugs, she looked back up, and met the dark eyes that were watching her.

"If you don't keep your word," she said, her voice dripping with sincerity and venom. "I will bath in your blood and laugh the entire time." Hojo narrowed his eyes, though a spark of fear shone in them.

"You would never," he said, but she could hear the wavering uncertainty in his voice. She gave him a small smile, still staring into his eyes.

"Keep looking into my eyes, and tell me whether or not I'm lying," she challenged, and was rewarded when he swallowed, and broke eye contact. She watched him gather himself, before he looked back at her, and the arrogance she had grown up with was back on his face.

"You'll come to me tonight," he said, and she debated for a second on telling him to go fuck himself. Then she looked down at the peaceful face of Sephiroth, and her resolve firmed. She would go through with this until she could get them all away.

"Yes," she said simply, and they both turned away from each other, their concentration once again back to the boy on the table.

That night, she truly began to hate. As Hojo tortured and raped her, trying his damndest to get a sound out of her, she kept reminding herself that this was so her brother could have a normal life. As normal as experiments like them could have, anyway. She kept reminding herself that this was her choice, her decision to sacrifice her mind and body so they could keep theirs intact. She stumbled back to her room, bloody and exhausted, but absurdly proud of herself. She hadn't made one noise.

**~x~x~x~**

One year later, they began their weapons training. It was obvious early on that the normal sword would not work for her, or any of them. Then three days into their training, Hojo showed up at the underground training facility. He had two people following him, and all three were carrying weapons. Hojo had two short swords, that reminded Storm of the machetes that she had read about in one of the books she found. They were obviously for her, since the blades themselves were the same color purple of her hair, and it looked like silver lightning was playing across the purple every time they moved. They watched with narrowed eyes as Hojo and his associates walked over to them.

"These are for you," Hojo told her, handing her the weapons hilt first. She took them slowly, hefting them to test the weight. They were surprisingly light, and she looked over, seeing that Sephiroth was holding a katana, and Cloud was staring at his own blade. It was dark silver, but the thing was at least a foot across, and as tall as they all were. She looked back at Hojo, her eyes narrowed.

"Why?" she asked simply, and he gave her a sharp edged grin.

"These two scimitars were made for you specifically," he said, circling her as she stared at the blades. They were easily three feet in length, a little taller then she was at the moment, and the sharp side glittered in the light from above. "You will grow into them. It seems that you will be smaller then your brothers, so the classic weapons wouldn't be to your style." She narrowed her eyes, her hands tightening on the hilts until her knuckles were white.

"Hey Demon," she called to Sephiroth, using their language and the nickname he had chosen. He looked up from his weapon, and raised an eyebrow at her in question. "You think if I killed him now, we could get away with it?" Cloud laughed, and the three children turned, giving Hojo the full effect of their softly glowing eyes. He took a step back from them, uncertainty flickering in his eyes as he looked from one to the other. He must have known what was on their minds, because although he had given his word that he would put them under for the mako treatments, that didn't stop him from torturing her two brothers when given the chance. She had almost killed him when she learned of it. He had told her she should of worded their bargain better, because he had only agreed to sedate them for the mako treatments, but he hadn't agreed to not hurt them in others ways. She had known, from that first meeting that he was a closet sadist, and he was paying the aides enough that they didn't say anything when the children would come back bloody and cut up. She had given her word though, and as much as she seethed with hatred for this man, she wouldn't go back on her word. So they had continued, and she was rarely able to keep her brothers from the "tender ministrations" of Hojo and some of his sicker aides.

"If you kill me, you'll all be dead," Hojo said, and the three kids smirked.

"Death might be preferable to this existence," Cloud said quietly, which made Hojo blink, then smirk.

"If death is what you want, then by all means, kill yourself," he challenged, and the three looked at each other, the same thought running through their brains. They had talked about it before, but none of them were willing to give up the hope that one day they would be free of Hojo. They all knew that the day would come, but it wouldn't be soon enough. If they could make it through a year of this, they could do it for as long as it would take.

"You would not let us kill ourselves," Sephiroth said quietly, as he and Cloud walked up to her, until the three children were facing Hojo, an identical look of hate in all three sets of cat eyes.

"We're to important for us to die," Cloud continued, their words making Hojo take another step back towards the door. The three smiled, and it sent shivers up the spines of all those watching.

"If we died, your funding would disappear, and you would no longer be the pet scientist of ShinRa," Storm said. Little did Hojo know, was that she had found the diaries of Sephiroth's mother, and her fellow scientist Dr. Gast. The three children knew all about the experiments that had created them, and they even knew about Jenova, the supposed Cetra. She even had the journal from Dr. Crescent that chronicled the experiments on the Turk Vincent Valentine, who even now was somewhere here. She hadn't told her brothers about that little tidbit, deciding to keep it to herself.

"How do you know all of this?" Hojo asked, his voice soft and surprised. It wasn't often he was surprised badly enough that he lost his arrogance, and the three children took fierce pride in the fact they had been the ones to cause it. They said nothing, deciding instead to stare at him, identical smirks gracing their aquiline features.

"You know were going to get in trouble for this," Cloud said in Yit, their name for the language only the three knew. Storm and Sephiroth both nodded, their smirked widening to grins as Hojo's face reddened, his eyes glittering with anger at their continued silence, and his inability to understand their words.

"Oh yea, were going to get it," Sephiroth said, and all three of them laughed as Hojo grabbed Storm's arms, shaking her until she was forced to drop the swords she still had.

"What did you just say?" Hojo demanded of her, and she just laughed, spitting into his face.

"Go fuck yourself," she said, glaring at him. His faced turned almost purple as rage over took him, and he nodded to the aides that had brought the weapons in. The aides took the weapons from the two boys, before hauling their still laughing bodies off the floor.

"You will pay for that," Hojo growled out, and Cloud laughed even harder.

"What else is new, you bastard?" Cloud said as they were all taken out the doors. So much for weapons practice, Storm thought as the three were tied down to tables. The tables they were strapped down to could be moved, so Hojo adjusted them until the three were in a circle, upright so they had no choice but to watch as their fellow siblings were injected with Jenova and mako, their blood a sickening mix of red, blue, and green, as they were tortured. The three had learned long ago to not make a sound, no matter what Hojo or his helpers did. Today was no different. They merely watched each other with dull gazes, taking strength in the fact that they were hardly ever subjected to this alone anymore. There was always at least one other with them, except for when Storm went and visited Hojo at night. Cloud still had no clue, and as she stared down at her bleeding body, she reaffirmed her pledge to herself that he would never find out. It was bad enough knowing that Sephiroth knew, and he couldn't do anything about it, because she had forbidden him to.

She winced as another needle was pressed into her arm, throwing her head back and silently screaming as the blue gunk wove its way through her veins like molten lava, burning wherever it touched. She opened her eyes as her body adjusted to the new mako, more quickly then the last one. She thought over the last thing Cloud said, and had to grin slightly, even though blood was pouring from her mouth from where she bit through her lip. What else is new was right, she thought.

**~x~x~x~**

Two years later, the three children were now seven years old, and each had scars covering their bodies, from where Hojo didn't let their bodies heal before cutting them open again. Storm was reading to Sephiroth, who had his head on her lap, when Cloud came stumbling into the room they had fought for. Last year Hojo had finally relented and let them all sleep in the same room again.

"Reaper?" Storm asked quietly in Yit, using the nickname she had given him, when she found it in one of the books she had confiscated from the library. Sephiroth sat up, and they both jumped off the bed as Cloud stumbled and almost fell, their arms going around him and helping the blond to the bed. He lay down, his thin pale frame shivering. His eyes were wide and glassy, staring at the ceiling and he didn't even react when Storm waved her hand in front of his face.

"What's wrong with him?" Sephiroth asked, still speaking in Yit. Their room was bugged, so they always spoke in their language when they were alone together. Storm shook her head, her fingers traveling over the body of her brother, as she tried to find some reason for his almost catatonic state.

"I don't know," she muttered, and then turned quickly as the door opened again, Hojo silhouetted against the harsh light from the lab right outside their door. The one stipulation for letting them sleep in the same room, was that one whole wall was a one-way mirror, even though that was nothing for their enhanced eyes. The door to their room led directly out into the lab where all their testing and experiments took place.

"What did you do to him?" Sephiroth yelled, getting to his feet as his hands clenched into fists. Storm was at his side, both of them standing in front of Cloud protectively. Hojo only smirked, and started walking over to them. He stopped when two growls sounded, green and purple eyes flashing dangerously.

"Stay away from our brother," Storm said quietly, and Hojo stopped in the middle of the room. "Now, what did you do to him?"

"He had a bad reaction to a new batch of mako, that's all," the scientist said, and the two kids narrowed their eyes.

"We have been subjected to new mako before, but it never did this," Sephiroth said, indicating the prone form behind him with a small wave of his hand.

"Yes, well, this was special," Hojo commented.

"What do you mean by special?" Storm asked, her hands itching for her blades. If she had them, Hojo would probably be dead right now. Hojo just smirked, crossing his arms over his chest.

"I mixed the cells of a wolf with it," he said, and his smirk grew when the jaws of the kids dropped.

"You did what?" Storm said, her voice quiet.

"You heard me," he said, and then walked over to her while she was still shocked, and grabbed her arm. It was the wrong thing to do, when Sephiroth launched his body at Hojo, pummeling him with his fists until Hojo let go of his sister. Hojo backed up, his glasses askew and blood dribbling from a busted lip. His eyes glittered murderously as he backed towards to door, calling out into the lab for reinforcements.

"You'll pay for that," Hojo muttered as aides came rushing into the room, collecting the two, who didn't even put up a fight. They only smirked at the predictable line from Hojo, since they had heard it numerous times over their lifetime. A familiar phrase dropped from his lips as he and Storm were walked out of the room.

"What else is new, you bastard?" he said, and both he and his sister laughed evilly. They had to pay for everything they did, in flesh and blood. They knew no other way.

**~x~x~x~**

Blades rang off each other as the three danced around each other. At nine years old, their bodies were small and lithe, twirling in movements that shouldn't have been possible for ones so young. Sephiroth's blade began to glow green, and Cloud smirked from his place next to him, both boys facing their sister. Cloud's own blade began to glow blue, their eyes reflecting the colors amazingly. Storm only smirked, and adjusted her weapons from her side, to crossing them in front of her, knowing what was coming. Sephiroth had a move that could cut through anything, the evidence on the walls where the green light had struck, cutting deep furrows into the metal. The amazing part was that he didn't use the actual blade for the attack. It was pure energy that both he and Cloud used for their attacks. She had her own, but she never used it against her brothers, not entirely sure they could block the upwards to 30 strikes that happened, in less then five seconds.

"You think you two can beat me finally?" she said, grinning. The only time the three ever smiled or were even happy was when they were training. The rest of their life was nothing but blue gunk. In the past year, they had begun spending three nights a week in containers of mako, their bodies absorbing almost all of it by the morning. Hojo had been ecstatic the first morning.

"Maybe not this time, but we will eventually," Cloud commented, coming at her with his sword lowered for an upward slash. Sephiroth was at his side, his sword in the same position. She braced herself, and their weapons sang against each other as they struck, the three once again going into a flurry of strikes and blows. No matter how hard the two tried, they couldn't land one blow on her. She on the other hand, left them with bruises and superficial cuts that healed in a matter of seconds.

The door swung open, and they all stopped immediately, their swords still locked together. As one, three pairs of eyes turned towards the door, narrowing when Hojo walked in with another scientist at his side, and two young boys behind him.

"It is like I said, your projects in no way could compare to mine," Hojo commented, his voice glowing with pride. The three narrowed their eyes, lowering their weapons, but all their attention was on the two boys behind the unknown man.

"We'll just see about that," the man said, motioning for the two to come forwards. They did, and all five children stared at each other in curiosity. The taller and older of the two boys had black hair and blue eyes, darker then Clouds but just as luminous. The shorter had auburn hair, and pale blue eyes, but the soft glowing of them let the three know that these two had also been exposed to the mako and Jenova. The two boys walked forwards, weapons attached to their backs, and stopped in front of the three. They stared at each other until the two men began arguing, and walked out of the room, the door swinging shut behind them. All five watched them go, before turning back to each other.

"I'm Angeal," the black haired one said. "This is Genesis." He motioned to the red head next to him, who gave him a scathing look. Storm had to hold back a soft laugh at the tolerant look Angeal sent Genesis, and she knew how he felt.

"I'm Storm, this is Cloud, and this is Sephiroth," she said, and when their names were said, her brothers inclined their heads. "Why are you here?"

Angeal shook his head, his eyebrows furrowing in a frown.

"I'm not entirely sure," he said, looking at Genesis, who returned his frown with one of his own. "Did you hear anything before we came here?" Genesis shook his head, and they all turned as the door opened again, and Hojo and the unknown man walked back in, rage livid on both their faces.

"Genesis, Angeal, were leaving," he said, and the two boys sent apologetic looks towards the three.

"It was nice meeting you three," Genesis and Angeal both said, earning a likewise from the three. They walked out of the room with the other man at their sides, and Hojo watched them go before turning to them.

"Treatments," he said simply, and the three growled softly. Knowing that it was useless, they put their weapons away, and walked out of the room, following Hojo to the lab.

**~x~x~x~**

A year later, she stumbled into their shared room, dripping blood onto the polished white floor, and not caring that she would be forced to clean it up. It was three in the morning, she was coming back from one of her sessions with Hojo, and as the door swung shut behind her, she noticed two pairs of glowing eyes looking at her from one bed. She was distracted enough from the pain and the odd, pleasant tingling she was still feeling, to not comprehend why they were both still awake. She did noticed how the blue around Sephiroth's pupil had grown, until you could see it clearly where it bled into the green. Clouds eyes were the opposite, with the green around his slit pupil having grown, until the two pairs of eyes were like mirrors of one another. She blinked as two pairs of hands grasped onto her arms, leading her over to the bed and gently lying her down. She turned her head, watching silently when Sephiroth and Cloud knelt down next to the bed, watching her with concerned eyes.

"I know what you've been doing for the past six years, sister," Cloud said quietly in Yit. She blinked, and tears filled her eyes as what he said hit home. So he had known what she had been doing. Did he know that in the past year, something had changed, so the pain made a fluttery feeling inside of her? That the "rough treatment" had begun to be something that she craved? No, they didn't know, she reminded herself. That was something she would take to her grave.

She turned her head to the wall, before gentle hands captured her chin, turning her face back to the pair.

"You don't need to protect us anymore," Sephiroth said quietly, taking her hands as Cloud continued to stroke her cheek, wiping away the tears gently.

"I hope you know that you've never had to protect us, but I appreciate the gesture," Cloud said quietly, smiling softly. She returned the smile, before the tears started coming swiftly and fast, her body curling up into a ball as she allowed herself to cry. Sephiroth stood, and lay himself down at her back, putting one arm under her head and the other around her waist, as Cloud lay down facing her, still stroking her cheek.

"When I made the bargain, I thought the injections were the worst of it," she muttered quietly when the tears quieted, leaving her feeling exhausted. "I didn't know that he would torture us, because I thought we were too valuable for him to possibly damage, either mentally or physically. I was so very, very wrong." She snuggled herself right up against Sephiroth, who leaned over and gave her a small kiss on her cheek. Cloud pulled a blanket over them, and the three cuddled up together in the same bed, something they hadn't done since they were very young.

"I don't think any of us thought Hojo would do what he has," Sephiroth said quietly, and she could feel Cloud nod.

"I only found out what you were doing a couple days ago," Cloud muttered. "You were talking in your sleep, so the next night I forced Demon here to give me the whole story." She turned her head to glare at the green eyes behind her.

"You know I can't resist those blue eyes," he said, and she had to chuckle softly at that. A truer statement had never been made. When Cloud turned those big blue eyes on either her or Sephiroth, he got whatever he wanted. Luckily for them, he didn't use his secret weapon very often.

"What I don't understand," Cloud continued. "Is why did you do it in the first place? Surely you knew, even when we were four, that we could have handled it." She was quiet for a moment as she contemplated his words.

"As I said before, I didn't know that the torturing would take place. I was hoping that the mako was the worst of it, and I wanted to spare both of you the pain of the injections. I knew that we had hardly any hope of escape, and I wanted to make your lives as easy as possible. I made a bargain with Hojo that if he sedated you when he did the mako treatments, I would do what he wanted, with no arguing. He has continued to sedate you, so I kept my end of the bargain. It was he that pointed out to me that the torturing and such weren't part of my agreement." Her voice turned bitter, and the tears started falling again. She was realizing how much she had actually failed her brothers, and herself. She couldn't protect herself, or them from anything.

"We're just as strong as you are," Sephiroth said from behind her, and she blinked. "We are your brothers, and that means we protect each other, no matter what. This is something that you don't need to protect us from. If anything, it's us that needs to protect you now. If we have to, we will physically keep you from going back to him." His voice was steely, and she had an absurd thought that he would be a great leader one day, with a voice like that. She smiled slightly, feeling better about herself. He was right. She didn't need to protect them from this. They went through worse pain then the mako, and all three of them had come out of it alive, if slightly less sane.

"I won't go back," she said quietly, and was rewarded as the both kissed her cheek.

"Then its settled, so go to sleep," Cloud commanded quietly, and she did laugh softly, closing her eyes and falling into the most restful sleep she had in years.

**~x~x~x~**

At thirteen, Storm and Cloud met their biological father for the first time. There was a war brewing, and he wanted to check out the new soldiers for his army. The three stood in front of the pudgy man, their hands clasped behind them and chins high as they stood in parade rest. He walked back and forth, but his eyes were mostly for the two blood siblings.

"These two are mine?" he asked for the third time, and Storm clenched her teeth together. Her anger was bright and hot underneath her skin, seeing this man for the first time. He gave their mother to Hojo for his sick experiments with no second thought. Now he was only concerned that they would be ready for the war that was coming. Her hands tightened into fists behind her back, until a soft sound from Cloud drew her away from her murderous rage.

Cloud was feeling much the same, as he watched the blond man pace back and forth in front of them, talking animatedly with Hojo, who was singing their praises. They had lived for thirteen years with no father or mother, so why did the appearance of their father cause them so much grief? Sephiroth was the only one who seemed unaffected, but they had known for a long time that his actual father was Hojo. Cloud couldn't decide who had it worse. He and Storm because they knew their father had given them up without a second thought, knowing that they were going to be experiments, or Sephiroth who had to endure unspeakable things at the hand of his father. What a twisted web we weave, he thought, the quote floating across his mind. He couldn't remember the rest of it, and movement caught his eye, making him turn, and blink in shocked amusement. Storm was in the Presidents face, giving him a piece of her mind, as Hojo watched, horrified. He exchanged a look with Sephiroth, and they were both glad they weren't on the end on that tongue for once.

"You sick sonofabitch," she growled out, her fingernails drawing her own blood her hands were so tight in fists. "You gave your own wife over to this sick bastard, knowing what was going to happen. How the fuck could you do that? How could you live your life knowing that your children were becoming lab experiments?" She blinked, and backed away, her lips still peeled from her teeth. "You know what? I don't give a fuck. Your not our father, you never will be. You'll be lucky if we don't get out of here and blow your entire sick operation apart." Her head whipped to the side as a meaty hand connected with her face, sending the sound echoing through the room. In response, three growls sounded, and the two teens walked over to her side, glaring at the President. She turned her head back, and smirked as she licked the blood off her split lip.

"Give me one good reason why I shouldn't kill you now, and save myself the trouble later," she hissed dangerously, and the President only smirked, though he did pale a little.

"If you kill me, you will be hunted to the ends of the planet," he said, and she only laughed.

"What makes you think that anyone could catch us?" Cloud asked, and the Presidents attention shifted to him. You could see the family resemblance more between the two men, both with blue eyes and blond hair, but truthfully, that's where the similarities ended. The President was fat, and had a wide face, reminiscent of a toad. Cloud was lean and lithe, his eyes wide and intelligent, and his face set in angular lines, much like the other two. Their features were aristocratic, sharp, a legacy from Jenova they were sure.

"You would have the whole of ShinRa's army after you, as well as the Turks, my personal fighting force. There wouldn't be anywhere you could hide," he said, with an arrogant lilt to his voice. Storm shook her head in disgust.

"So what do you expect us to do with this war?" she asked, because she was actually curious, and she didn't want to be angry anymore. The President looked to Hojo first, before back to the teens who were watching him with eyes that had seen to much for their age. As with everyone else, it sent shivers down his spine, and the feeling that his black soul was bared for the three to see and dissect. He cleared his throat, before assuming his arrogant mantel once again.

"You will be the prototype for a new program were hoping to establish, SOLDIER. They will be better then the actual army grunts, faster, more intelligent. You and they will be the elite of the army." She was intrigued despite herself, and she could feel the curiosity in the other two, even though the three faces showed no emotion. Elation filled her as she thought about it, and she had a hard time not smiling. If this was true, it meant that they would finally be out on their own, in the real world. They could finally see the sun, and the blue sky that they had read about in the books. The thought of being forced into a war that she didn't want a part in didn't cross her mind, and the only thought that was in her mind is that they would be free. She savored the word. Free.

**~x~x~x~**

Attaching her two swords to her back, she laced up her calf high boots, before sliding the two daggers that she had into the sheaths on the inside of the boots. She stood straight, and tightened the belt around her hips, adjusting the sheaths that were strapped around her thighs. She reached over to the table to her right, and grasped the other two daggers by the hilts, sliding the wicked looking blades into their sheaths. Tugging her plain black tank top down, she tightened the harness that crossed over her chest that her two swords were attached to, via two magnets in each strap that crossed her back. Twisting and turning, she made sure that nothing would move, or shift unexpectedly.

Cloud zipped up the ribbed, sleeveless shirt, and then slid the harness over his chest, buckling it tightly around his ribs. He attached his large sword to the magnet at the cross of the harness between his shoulder blades, and had to marvel once again at the size of his weapon. Hojo had said it was designed after the sword that Angeal had, the black haired boy they had met the one time. It was five feet in length, and about a foot across. The blade itself was thick, and one side was jagged with sharp teeth, reminiscent of the teeth of a shark. The other side was sharpened to a razors edge. He bent down, and laced his boots tighter, tucking the bottom of his black cargo pants into the boots. He adjusted the belt that held the pants, and then looked over to Sephiroth, raising an eyebrow at the clothing his brother had picked.

Sephiroth shook himself, adjusting the floor length black leather coat that covered his bare chest. He didn't like shirts, since they always reminded him of the scrubs he and his siblings were forced to wear while with Hojo. Instead, he had gotten the coat, deciding that it covered enough of him. The harness for his long blade was underneath the coat, and as he attached the blade to the magnet, he buckled the single tie of his coat over his stomach. He sat down on the floor, pulling his knee high boots up, tucking the baggy black leather pants into them, before zipping them up. He then stood, and gazed down at his pants, eyes narrowed. The only ones that had that would fit his long legs had more buckles around the knees, and some on the thighs. He looked over at Storm, and sighed. She was at least able to get something simple to wear. She had on plain black leather pants, skin tight, and low enough on her hips that you could see her bones above the belt. Cloud and Storm turned to him, and the three looked each other over.

"You look dangerous," Storm told him, and he grinned as Cloud nodded, agreeing. He looked her over critically, as she slid gloves over her hands, and then up her arms where they ended at her elbows. At fourteen, she was only 5'4, where he and Cloud were both 5'10, and they knew they weren't done growing yet. Storm on the other hand, was probably at the height she would be for the rest of her life. Standing there though, attaching metal vambraces to her forearms, she looked dangerous. She was all black, silver, and purple. Thin black strings were tied around her upper arms, and the ends trailed beautifully over her translucent skin.

"You look like a walking weapon," he said, which made Cloud laugh even as he agreed. She blushed, and he grinned slightly.

"Time for the final touches," Cloud said quietly, and they all turned their attention to the shoulder guards that were sitting on the floor. They were something they had all agreed on, to differentiate themselves from the rest. Storm had argued that their skills and weapons were going to be enough, but the two boys outvoted her. Truthfully, when the weapons merchant that Hojo had brought in had displayed these, they couldn't resist. Sephiroth bent, and lifted the two he had chosen for himself, setting them on his shoulders, and then he was at a loss. He looked at his two siblings with pleading eyes, which made them both laugh, and walk over to him. Soon they had both buckled down, and they stepped back, looking at him with unreadable eyes.

"Well?" Sephiroth asked, and Storm just smiled slightly.

"I think you made a right choice in getting these," she said, and Cloud grinned.

"They look really good," he said, bending down and lifting the one that he had gotten. It was large like Sephiroth's, but it didn't come down on his chest or back like the others did. Cloud was able to put it on without help, Sephiroth noted with amused envy. They both turned to Storm, who already had hers attached. Hers weren't as bulky, shaped more like a teardrop, as they followed the curve of her shoulder, ending mid-upper arm. The metal was black, but it was edged in bright silver, creating swirling designs over it. The three turned as the door opened, and Hojo walked into the room. He stopped, and looked at all the three. His eyes settled on Storm, and she gave him a small smirk as she noticed the hunger that was in his dark eyes.

"Come," he commanded, and the three followed him out, wondering what would happen to them now. They were going outside the lab for the first time in fourteen years, and immediately going into battle. The war had started, and ShinRa needed its SOLDIER's.


End file.
